Syria leads discussion at Munich

Geneva II: The second round of talks between the Syrian government and the opposition is supposed be more productive.Source: AP

No obvious progress has been made at the Syrian talks, but the situation is not hopeless.

The conflict in Syria and the dramatic
situation in Ukraine were at the top of agenda of last weekend’s 50th Munich
Security Conference. As soon as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived
in the German city late last Friday, he engaged in talks on the situation in
Syria. He first held a one-on-one meeting with U.S. State Secretary John Kerry;
then, the two were joined by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and special UN
and Arab League representative Lakhdar Brahimi.

Brahimi arrived in Munich from Geneva,
where the first round of talks between the Syrian government and the opposition
ended on Jan. 31. The Algerian diplomat reported that the talks would resume on
Feb. 10, and expressed his hope that the second round
would be more productive.

“No significant practical solutions have
been identified at the talks so far - but there is no feeling of hopelessness,
either," a source in the Russian delegation to the UN and other
international organizations in Geneva said. Brahimi echoed that sentiment in
Munich. “The gap between the positions of the two sides remains very
wide," said Brahimi. “I was not expecting any immediate results. But the
ice is breaking, albeit slowly. I hope that the second round will be more
constructive and productive.”

In fact, some progress has been achieved
on the issue of providing humanitarian assistance to the thousands of
Palestinians living at the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus. The camp was set
up well before the fighting broke out in Syria. Brahimi also said, however,
that little has been done to bring relief to the people of Homs or facilitate
an exchange of prisoners between the government and the rebels.
"Differences between the two sides are very significant, and there is no
point pretending otherwise," Brahimi said.

The most contentious issue is the
formation of a transitional governing body in Syria. Representatives of the
National Coalition for the Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces hoped to
begin discussing the composition and the remit of that body, but the Syrian
government’s delegation insisted that fighting terrorism should be the top
priority.

To prevent the talks from breaking down,
Ban Ki-moon urged the two co-sponsors of the Geneva II conference, Russia and
the United States, to become more involved in the proceedings. Kerry responded
by saying that he is working with Lavrov in order to engage the government of
Bashar Assad in the peaceful settlement process. He said there were good
reasons why Assad should be more interested in urgently taking part in the
talks, but did not specify what those reasons were.

For his part, Lavrov argued that Moscow
cannot achieve results on its own by pressuring Assad and that those who
support the Syrian opposition should also use their clout with the rebels.
Lavrov reiterated that sentiment when he addressed the Munich Conference.
“Acting alone, Russia cannot achieve anything," Lavrov said. “It is
important that the external players should desist from trying to portray their
‘sponsored’ Syrian representatives as the only legitimate representatives of
the Syrian people. They should put pressure on the Syrian factions to remain in
Geneva and press ahead with the talks instead of slamming the door."

Lavrov added that the dialogue in Geneva
must be made genuinely representative as soon as possible. “Everyone who has
influence on the opposition must make sure that all sections of Syrian society
are represented at the negotiating table. That is a requirement outlined in UN
Security Council Resolution 2118, which approves the June 30, 2012 Geneva
Communiqué and supports the conference that aims to implement that communiqué,”
Lavrov said.

Lavrov once again drew the Euro-Atlantic
political elite’s attention to the fact that the prolonged conflict has turned
Syria into a bastion of extremists and terrorists from all over the world.
Nobody knows how these people will apply the dangerous skills they have gained
in Syria
once they have returned home. “The outrages they are committing against
Christians and other minorities in Middle Eastern countries give plenty of
reasons to be very worried," said Lavrov.

Meanwhile, the head of the Syrian National
Coalition, Ahmad al-Jarba, is expected in Moscow on Feb. 3. He is scheduled to
meet Lavrov the following day to discuss the priorities for the second round of
the Geneva II talks.